Here are a group of women whose friendship; teamwork, comradery and
just wanting to have fun have developed into some very lofty goals. The
most current achievement was the Davis Stampede on February 2, 2003. This
half-marathon was just a stepping-stone to the ultimate goal of a full
marathon, the "Avenue of the Giants" Marathon on May 4, 2003. A few
of
the ladies needed to step up the pace just a little at the Davis
Stampede so they ran the 5K prior to the 13.1 miles for a total of 16
miles. If anyone saw them there, they were the ladies in yellow count
them - 10 of them. Some fellow runners labeled us the "bumble bees"
-
they buzzed right by them but were nice enough not to sting.

These ladies have been training for several months to achieve the 26.2
mile"stone". Their ages: 30-40-50 - who cares. They are a team of
dedicated women where age just doesn't matter. The "official" training
began in January, but unofficially, training started last fall. Several
of them completed the Four Bridges Half-Marathon in Folsom last November.

Carmen is the group's mentor, trainer and "mother". She has run 3
marathons already and uses her experience to help make their goals a
reality. She is an awesome woman who keeps us right on track. They are
using the Jeff Galloway run/walk method to complete the race for a fast
recovery and injury free journey. Deena is instrumental in keeping the
timing of the run/walk. Terri has stepped up her pace a little and
decided to do the Napa Marathon in March prior to the race in May.
Monica has organized mapped out the weekend training routes and with the
help from her sister, Fern who lives in Davis, got them all registered
and picked up packets to save valuable "sleep" time the morning of
the
race. Julia just started running this year and with a little help from
her dog "Cindi" she has come a long way on her path to running. Kimhas
also just started running. Those ladies were just having too much fun
without her and she wanted to join in. Karen keeps the weekly runs
lively with her awesome "Super Woman" stamina. Stephanie and Karole
have recently joined the team and they are already running like pros.
As you can see this is "team" effort to get to the finish line.

All of them have pretty busy lives, both personal and professional, yet
their Sunday runs are sacred territory. It takes indescribable
dedication and determination to run a marathon (most of us can't walk
26.2 miles). If you ever see the marathon ladies out on the trail, give
them a "high five" - that is if you can get their attention. They
have a
reputation for keeping constant, lively conversations (imagine that -
women talking and running, running and talking).

Most of the ladies have been friends for a long time, they work out at
the same gym every morning and developed awesome friendships. They all
live in the Granite Bay, Loomis, Roseville, Folsom area and have a
girl's night out about once a month just to see what each other looks
like with their hair done and no "gym clothes".